US 25 once began in Michigan; however, in 1974 its route was truncated, and it now begins in Covington, Kentucky. From there it travels south along I-75. It passes through Georgetown, Lexington, Richmond, Mount Vernon, and London. In Corbin the road splits and becomes US 25E and US 25W. US 25W continues along I-75 and exits the state south of Williamsburg. US 25E passes through Pineville and Middlesboro and exits the state through the Cumberland Gap Tunnel.

Main Street (US 25) in Madison County has been permanently reduced to two lanes with a continuous left turn lane. The new lane configuration is meant to reduce congestion caused by drivers making left turns.

Engineers have been examining how to change Dixie Highway to adapt to traffic. Some proposals include putting traffic lights along the road under control of human operators. Dixie Highway runs parallel to I-71/I-75, and receives some of I-71/I-75’s traffic whenever an accident forces a closure of the interstate.

Another legislative session brings about another effort to rename a highway in honor of Daniel Boone. Current efforts are focused on renaming US 25E between Corbin and Middlesboro—which roughly follows the route of Daniel Boone’s Wilderness Trail—in honor of the early explorer. The former Daniel Boone Parkway between London and Hazard is likely to remain named for U.S. Representative Hal Rogers.

The Boone Society has posted a petition requesting that US 25E be renamed in honor of Daniel Boone on their website: The Boone Society

Descendants of Daniel Boone feel slighted by Kentucky politicians. First Paul Patton had the Daniel Boone Parkway renamed the Hal Rogers Parkway, and then state legislature failed to either re-rename the Hal Rogers Parkway or rename another road in honor of Boone.

Today, Gov. Ernie Fletcher appointed Sam Beverage, PE as State Highway Engineer. The State Highway Engineer works with the Commissioner of Highways to administer the design, construction, operation and maintenance of the more than 27,000 miles of state maintained roads in Kentucky. Beverage has previously served the transportation cabinet as Chief District Engineer for District 6, District 10, and District 11. Earlier this year, Gov. Fletcher appointed Beverage as Chief District Engineer for both Districts 10 and 11. Beverage also previously served as Commissioner of the West Virginia Department of Highways.

Beverage will replace J.M. “Mac” Yowell. Since becoming State Highway Engineer in 1992, Yowell has served under three governors: Jones, Patton, and Fletcher. At twelve years, he was the longest serving state highway engineer in the nation. Yowell will continue to serve the cabinet in the capacity of an executive advisor.

Among the transportation cabinet’s accomplishments during Yowell’s tenure was the completion of the Cumberland Gap Tunnel. Yowell was a driving force behind the completion of that project.

Work is underway to replace joints and replace the deck of the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge over the Ohio River at Covington. The bridge, which shares piers with the neighboring C&O railroad bridge, opened in 1974 and carries US 25, US 127, and US 42 into Cincinnati.

At a recent meeting of the Dixie Highway Corridor Advisory Committee several ideas were proposed for reducing congestion on Dixie Highway in Kenton County. Among the proposals were construction of traffic roundabouts at several intersections, coordination of traffic lights, and a road “diet.” The diet would consist of reducing the highway from two lanes in each direction to one lane in each direction and adding a continuous center left turn lane. None of these proposals are final, and the group is expected to publish a report on possible solutions in June of 2005.

When the 2004 Recommended Six-Year Highway Plan was released Transportation Cabinet Secretary Maxwell Clay Bailey assured legislators that no projects had been removed the 2002 Six-Year Plan; however, the Courier-Journal has found that fifteen projects scheduled under the 2002 plan were moved to the unscheduled needs list in the new 2004 plan.

In an article that no longer appears to be online, the Georgetown News-Graphic reports that the final leg of the Georgetown Bypass would be completed in 2010 under the proposed six-year highway plan. Construction on the bypass originally began in 1994 when the section eastern half of the bypass from US 25 south to US 25 north was completed. In 1997, the southwestern stretch of the bypass between US 460 west and US 25 south was constructed.

Under the proposed six year highway plan, right of way purchases for the stretch of the bypass between US 460 west and US 25 north would begin in 2007. Actual construction of the road would begin in 2010.

The Kentucky House of Representatives passed a bill on Friday that would keep the name Hal Rogers Parkway on the London-Harzard parkway and would name US 25E between Corbin and Middlesboro the “Daniel Boone Wilderness Trail.” The house hopes that this compromise will be acceptable since US 25E roughly follows the path of Wilderness Trail. Daniel Boone helped blaze the Wilderness Trail in 1769. The path through the Cumberland Gap helped open Kentucky to settlement.

Preacher William Boyd Bingham II of Middlesboro died last week. The preacher, who was a minister for 60 years, helped campaign for the construction of the Cumberland Gap Tunnel and the elimination of the dangerous highway through the gap.

The Cumberland Gap Tunnel Authority in the process of installing new variable message signs along the approaches to the tunnel and inside the tunnel itself. This week work will be underway to install new signs in the tunnel itself. There will be temporary lane closures in both directions. Motorists are asked to obey speed limit signs and be mindful of tunnel employees.

State Representative Brent Yonts has filed a resolution to place two names on the parkway connecting London and Hazard. Yonts proposes the parkway be officially known as both the Hal Rogers Parkway and the Daniel Boone Parkway. He hopes that the compromise proposal will please those wishing to keep Daniel Boone.s name on the parkway and still provide recognition for U.S. congressman Hal Rogers. Rep. Rogers helped secure federal money to remove tolls from the parkway; In May, Governor Paul Patton directed that the parkway be renamed as the Hal Rogers Parkway. Yonts. resolution cannot be voted on until the General Assembly convenes in January.

Meanwhile, Governor Patton proposed renaming US 25E between Corbin and Middlesboro to honor Daniel Boone. US 25E generally follows the route of Boone.s Wilderness Road. The road has been upgraded to four lanes over the pass 20 years.

Archaeologists are conducting investigations of several sites along US 25 between Lexington and Georgetown as preparation work for major widening of the road. Actual construction of the route is expected to begin in late 2006 or early 2007.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet has established a website with information about the Richmond Road project at us25.ky.gov. The site includes a construction schedule, maps of the project, and photographs relating to the project.

When the first part of this bridge opened in 1946 it was the 7th tallest bridge in the United States. Today it is still an engineering wonder; two parallel bridges were joined together by a third bridge to form one continuous roadway. On July 5, 2003, I took these pictures of the I-75's crossing of the Kentucky River: the Clay's Ferry Bridge.

COVINGTON, Ky.-- (September 16, 2002) –Transportation Secretary James Codell III along with local and state officials held a groundbreaking ceremony in Dry Ridge today to celebrate the beginning of construction of the East Dry Ridge Connector. Rifle Coal Company, in joint venture with Judy Construction Company, has been awarded the $9.5 million contract and will start construction by September 21, 2002. The project includes the construction of a new three lane connector route from US 25 south of Dry Ridge…east of the Norfolk Southern Railroad…then over the Norfolk Southern Railroad before tying into KY 22 near the I-75 Interchange.
Secretary Codell said the new connector will benefit the people of Dry Ridge in three ways. "This new route will provide better access to the Dry Ridge Industrial Park…provide a safer way for motorists to cross the railroad tracks and…alleviate traffic congestion through the downtown area."

Three new America's Byways have been designated in Kentucky. These include US 23, "The Country Music Highway," in Eastern Kentucky; KY 15, "The Red River Gorge Scenic Byway;" and parts of US 25 and KY 229 which form "The Wilderness Road Heritage Highway." The National Scenic Byways Program was started in 1991 to preserve historic and scenic highways. It is administered by the Federal Highway Administration. These three routes are the first America's Byways to be designated in Kentucky.

According to this Kentucky Post article, county officials, planners, and engineers are seeking to make improvements to US 25 Dixie Highway in Northern Kentucky. They call it Kenton County's most pressing road need. Dixie Highways runs parallel to I-75, and traffic is increasingly shifting from I-75 to Dixie Highway. Plans have been around for nearly 20 years to improve the road.

After examining press releases from Congressman Fletcher (no longer online) and Congressman Rogers, I have learned more specific details about what projects Kentucky's money in the 2002 U.S. Department of Transportation spending bill has been allocated for:

$20 million for land acquisition and planning efforts for Interstate 66, with an additional $2.5 million provided for ongoing design efforts of I-66 in Pike County.

$2 million for a new initiative at the University of Kentucky. The Academy for Community Transportation Innovation will educate professionals and study transportation development, planning and design of suburban and rural areas.

$2 million to help Kentucky establish a statewide clearinghouse for public travel information.

$2 million for a project to provide traffic information through a universal telephone number (5-1-1). The pilot project will build a first generation 511 call center in Kentucky that could become a national resource for traffic information.

$15.5 million for bus and bus facility needs across Kentucky.

$1.5 million for preliminary work on a project to straighten a dangerous section of the Daniel Boone Parkway in Leslie County between mileposts 37 and 44

$4 million for improved access to the Parkway from the new Clay/Leslie County Industrial Park

$2 million for continued work on a project to improve US 25N in Rockcastle County to provide for increased traffic at the new Country Music Hall of Fame

$1.4 million to improve Cold Hill Road, located in the Daniel Boone National Forest in Laurel County

$995,000 to improve a stretch of Craigs Creek Road on U.S. Forest Service land in Laurel County

$885,000 for improvements to Kentucky’s Scenic Byways, including the Country Music Highway, the Wilderness Road Heritage Highway and the Cumberland Cultural Heritage Highway.

$800,000 for the design phase of a 4-lane project on a section of US 27 south of Somerset to Burnside Island.

Update: The KYTC has also launched two new websites devoted to particular projects: KY52.com for improvements to KY 52 in Garrard and Madison counties and E2RC.com for information about the Elizabethtown-Radcliff Connector.

This KYTC press release commemorates the five year anniversary of the opening of the Cumberland Gap Tunnel. The press release contains background information about the tunnel and several pictures of the tunnel.

The Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer reports in this August 14, 2001 article (no longer online) that work has begun to remove all traces of the old US 25E through Cumberland Gap. The plans are to restore the area to how it would have looked in 1780. US 25E now travels through the Cumberland Gap tunnel which opened in 1996.

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